1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a user equipment for performing identity verification of the user of the equipment, a communication equipment, an authentication system, an authentication method, an authentication program and a recording medium.
2. Description of the Related Art
The need for security strengthening is increasing with widespread use of portable terminals and strengthening of functions. In particular, ensuring of security is an absolute requirement if functions directly related to financial transactions such as electronic money are equipped.
In order to respond to such need, living body authentication in which ensuring of security is relatively easy is proposed in addition to security measures such as personal identification number and password of the prior art. Among them, face authentication is an identification method normally performed by people in ordinary living, and is often adopted since psychological resistance is small, it can be achieved with small investment since devices that can perform imaging are increasing with widespread use of CCD (Charge Coupled Device) camera etc.
However, the problem of spoofing by person other than the person in question may arise in face authentication, similar to other authentication methods. For example, spoofing is easily carried out with passwords and personal identification numbers if the numbers are leaked through peeping. Regarding fingerprint authentication considered to have a relatively high security, spoofing by pseudo-finger has been reported. Spoofing is easily carried out using photographs since authentication is performed based on the image in the face authentication technique. This is significant in the authentication technique by portable terminal and the like that can perform authentication at any location rather than in the authentication technique performed by equipments arranged at a location that may attract public attention.
The prior art documents related to the present invention include Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2003-006549 (date of publication: Jan. 10, 2003) and Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2005-063342 (date of publication: Mar. 10, 2005).
In Japanese Patent Publication Laid-Open No. 2003-006549 (date of publication: Jan. 10, 2003), a configuration is disclosed in which a portable telephone with fingerprint authentication device capable of performing fingerprint authentication on the consumer and a register with cradle for relaying the communication with the portable telephone by arranging the portable telephone of a retail store are connected to the consumer account of the financial institution and the retail store account via the network, where the consumer presents the portable telephone when buying goods, the portable telephone is verified whether it is of the person in question using the fingerprint authentication device, and after being verified, the data of the payment is saved in the portable telephone and the register of the retail store, and the money is withdrawn from the financial institution specified by the consumer based on the data.
In Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2005-063342, the user images his/her face using the camera of the portable telephone right before using the credit card, and transmits the photograph of the face to the credit card company along with the input password; and the credit card company permits the use of the credit card by the user during a predefined time after confirming that the photograph of the face and the password are registered in the database.